The five-gallon bucket is a common item at construction sites, garages, and in the backs of pickup trucks all over the country. Originally intended to ship bulk quantities of food for the foodservice industry or bulk quantities of spackling etc. for the construction industry, people have found that there are several additional uses for the buckets. Such uses include using them to hold paint to use with a roller to holding bait for fishing. The result is that these buckets are readily available at home improvement stores to purchase as well as there being a large volume of buckets in the field that have been repurposed and are being re-used after their initial use has expired.
The five-gallon bucket, although thin and made of plastic, is a relatively strong component that can easily support a 200 plus pound man sitting on top of it. In addition, the buckets are lightweight, stackable, and store easily.